Umbrella ferrule



Jan. 24, 1950 D. MILLER v 2,495,380

' UMBRELLA FERRULE Filed Aug. 2, 1945 l I V ,7 'yce. Z I 17 D VID Mli fff HIS ATTORNEYS Patented Jan. 24,- 1950 UNITED STATES PATENT OFFICE UMBRELLA FERRULE David Miller, Lancaster, Pa.

Application August 2, l94 5,'Serial No. 608,443 11. 135-36) 5 3 Claims.

This invention relates to improvements in ferrules for umbrellas.

Usually, covers of umbrellas are attached to the umbrella stick or staff through the medium of a ferrule applied to the tip end of the stick and the primary object is to provide a ferrule which can be firmly and securely attached to the umbrella stick. 7

More specifically, the invention contemplates a ferrule of non-nailable material, preferably a ferrule made of a moldable plastics material, which can be attached to the umbrella stick by a nail driven through the ferrule into the tip end of the stick. In this connection, the invention further contemplates a molded ferrule having an end wall formed with an opening or hole through which the nail is driven, the exterior surface of said end wall having a countersink surrounding said hole whereby when the nail is driven into the stick the head of the nail will not protrude beyond the exterior of the end wall of the ferrule.

With these and other objects in view, the invention consists in certain details of construction and combinations and arrangements of parts, all as will hereinafter be more fully described and the novel features thereof particularly pointed out in the appended claims.

In the accompanying drawing- Figure 1 is a sectional view, taken longitudinally of the umbrella stick, illustrating the present ferrule attached to the tip end portion of the stick with the covering fabric, only a portion of which is illustrated, secured therein;

Fig. 2 is an elevational view of the closed end of the ferrule; and

Fig. 3 is a side elevational view of the ferrule.

In accordance with usual practice, the ribs (not shown) for maintaining the cover I expanded are secured between the slotted flanges Ii, l2 of telescopically arranged sleeves l3, M, which are attached to the stick l5 near the tip end thereof by a cross pin l6 and the edge of the opening in the cover surrounding the stick is secured or clamped between the open end of the ferrule l7 and a flange I8 on a hollow plug or inner ferrule [9, the inner portion of this plug l9 preferably being recessed to accommodate the sleeves l3, Hi. In assembling these parts, suitable reinforcement may be provided for the edge of the cover clamped between the ferrule l1 and flange I8 by disk-shaped fabric members such as indicated at 20, located either at the outside, or at both sides, of the covering edge between the ferrule and said flange.

In the present construction, the hollow plug or inner ferrule I9 is provided with an inwardly extending portion 2! at one end which seats firmly against the end of stick I5 and limits the extent to which that member can be driven or forced on to the stick. This inwardly extending portion 19 may be formed by what is substantially the structural equivalent of an end wall forthe hollow plug except that there is an opening 22 for the nail 23 by which the ferrule l1, together with said plug, are secured to the stick.

The end wall of the ferrule l! is also formed with an opening 24 through which the nail 23 is driven and while this opening is made of a cross-sectional size substantially corresponding to that of the nail, it is preferred to make the opening 22 in plug 19 somewhat larger in order to insure registration of the two holes. This guards against the plug, which is preferably a molded product, being broken or fractured by the nail when the latter is driven into the stick. In order to prevent the nail protruding beyond the outer surface of the end wall of the ferrule, said wall is formed with a countersunk area 25 surrounding the hole 24, said countersunk area being of a depth sufficient to permit the nail to be driven into the stick at least to a point where the head of the nail will lie flush with the outer surface of the ferrule end. As the ferrules are usually made of a molded plastic material, the provision of the hole 24 and countersink 25 does not increase the production costs of the ferrules. On the other hand, the provision of these details adds to the appearance of the finished umbrella by reason of the nail head being positioned in the countersunk area.

Heretofore, it has been the general practice, in the manufacture of umbrellas, to attach the ferrule to the stick with a suitable adhesive, such as glue, or cement but this form of attachment has always proven unsatisfactory as the ferrules, so attached, frequently became loose and fell off. Various means or arrangements have been proposed for curing this defect but, to date, none has proven satisfactory. Whereas, with the present invention, the ferrule, and all the associated parts for securing the cover around the stick are firmly and securely attached to the stick.

What is claimed is:

1. In an umbrella, means for attaching a covering around the tip end of the umbrella stick comprising an inner hollow plug seated on the tip end of said stick, a ferrul telescopically engaged over said plug, said plug and ferrule each having an apertured end Wall with the two apertures in registry with each other, cooperating clamping surfaces on said plug and ferrule between which said cover is secured, a nail driven into the tip end of the stick through said alined apertures for attaching said ferrule and plug to the stick, and means, associated with said covering attaching means, comprising a pair of telescopically arranged sleeves, both of which are received into the inner portion of said hollow plug, a cross pin attaching said sleeve to said stick near the tip end thereof for securin rib members in relation to said covering.

2. In a umbrella, means for attaching a covering around the tip end of the umbrella stick, said means comprising an inner plug mounted on the tip end of the stick, a circumferential shoulder formed on said plug a ferrule telescopically received on said plug, a recess formed in said ferrule to receive the shoulder on said plug, cooperating clamping surfaces on said plug and ferrule between which said covering is secured, said shoulder and said recess providing a limited clamping action on said covering, said plug and ferrule each having an apertured end wall, and a nail extending through said apertures into said stick with the head of the nail seated against the outer surface of the end wall of the ferrule.

3. In an umbrella, means for attaching a covering to an umbrella stick, said covering having an opening therein through which the stick protrudes, said attaching means comprising an inner plug telescopically fitted on the tip end of the stick, an outer ferrule telescopically fitted on said plug, cooperating clamping surfaces on said plug and ferrule between which the edge portion of the covering around said opening is secured, said ferrule having an end wall formed with an aperture therein, and a nail extending through said aperture into the stick with its head seated against the outer surface of the end wall of the ferrule for attaching the ferrule and plug to the stick),

the outer surface of the end wall of the ferrule REFERENCES CITED The following references are of record in the file of this patent:

UNITED STATES PATENTS Number Name Date 1,638,764 Fabbrin Aug. 9, 1927 2,044,805 Meyerkort June 23, 1936 2,317,160 Weinberg Apr. 20, 1943 2,350,227 Goldstein May 30, 1944 

